I think there is more than 1 1915 used on Ragtime. Half the film was shot on a big backlot set in Shepperton Studios just outside London, England, so I think we had a duplicate car in the UK. First film I ever worked on, it was b####dy freezing on that lot, we all wore 3 layers under our costumes. M...

I've told Ian there is an article to be written here. He has photos pre- and during-restoration. The car was previously owned for a long time by one of our club members Rodger Florio who sadly died just before the restoration was completed, so never saw it. I don't know if we have any history prior ...

Teddies on lockdown! Left the Model T ticking over outside the garage and a Teddy decided to go for a ride. His feet couldn't reach the pedals so didn't get too far. Only a broken lamp and ,luckily, no stuffing was spilt.

We have to remember these early bodies were craftsman made so there may be no single standard, it would have varied depending on which man was doing the job and what hardware was available. Like linestriping which varies from car to car. Re my axle, that needs cooperation with a machine shop, not po...

Mike Bender recommends you work on the trans with it bolted to the engine on an engine stand. Makes it easier to check for runout with a dial gauge etc. He makes the good point that the factory had separate shops for engine and trans assembly, we restorers are only doing one at a time. Instead of he...

Our fuel in the UK is E5 but we are moving to E10. I am told there will be superunleaded 97 octane available, but I don't know if that will be ethanol free. I've had no problems with any of my cars or tractor on E5.

This is British. There were T and TT versions, possibly supplied by one of the bread or flour companies - Hovis? Lots of bakers had them, I don't know of a survivor, the construction probably didn't lend itself to long term use and what could you use a second hand loaf for once the baker finished wi...

Looking at some lights on a Frenchman's stall at Beaulieu Autojumble some years ago, I asked why the LH of each pair had a white window with blue or green chevrons(like the Citroen badge). The French have, or had, 'priority to the right' - the fellow coming out of the road on your right will shoot o...

I’ve been around since 2004. I miss the old forum and many of the old members who are either no longer with us, or choose not to post anymore, or very seldom, like me. I was searching the old forum and I was amazed at how much more interesting and active the old forum was. There were many, many mor...

I keep getting this style of listing turning up on my searches https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/184155782868?ul_noapp=true Click on sellers other items and he has over 2000 on offer. Click on the photos and 2nd photo tells you not to bid but email him. Every item I've seen in this style has a different gm...

Read the description and it's not quite the unmolested find the headline suggests, it had a chequered career in the 20s & 30s, maybe it didn't run when parked:-)
And the engine no is 33,000 or so different from the data plate. The vendor seems to think it came from the factory like that.

Quite a few British cars in the 30s had freewheels, the idea being you could save fuel. BUT, you had a lever to disengage it when you needed engine braking. This T accessory on its nice tin is a lovely display item but I wouldn't want it in my car.

Talking to Neil Tuckett, he tells me that a nice car he brought from California some years ago has been nicely restored (but in yellow with tan leather!) and is alive and well in Surrey, England, serial no 33xx. Also the car I mentioned which Bonhams sold was a pre-1000 serial #, (738?) although not...

Here's the block IMG_20191021_135149378.jpg DSC02011.JPG I have too many projects lined up, the no-rivet rear end is about halfway down that list..... Kim probably has a better handle than I on survivors. I've seen the Don Hess' #2 up in Scotland, and there's a water-pump car (# in the 1600s I belie...

Tony, some image programs will read PDF and let you output as JPG. Or you could go analog, print it and then scan it back in! Here's the sheets for my car #9267. It's a poor copy sent to me in 1994 by Mark Herdman, I wonder if a better print could be made now. My car has an aftermarket top, so I thi...

I'm with Jeff on this. Belts are going to help with heavy braking, swerves or minor fender-benders. In a major accident nothing is going to help you much in an antique car, especially a lightweight T, but I think I would rather be restrained from being thrown through the windshield. One suggestion t...

There was a pioneering early lady motorist in the 1900s who used her makeup mirror to check for cars behind. Can't remember her name right now, but she usually gets the credit for the rear view mirror. She also carried a pistol for protection, so maybe she also invented the drive-by shooting

Yes, I posted about this not long ago. 2 engines, piston pins seized after a couple of thousand miles, even though they seemed loose on assembly. Seems the old test of letting the rod drop when holding piston horizontal does not work. Honed them out, we'll see how the next few thousand miles go.

He does say the rear is late 09 or 10, to be fair. I agree the motor has been faked from a later block (the number block is awful) and we don't see the hogshead to check the 2 lever setup. It's a right bitza and needs a lot of work to make halfway respectable.

Visiting London is not 'doing' England, anymore than me visiting New York would be 'doing' the US. For car action you need to get out of London - the city is so tangled with Low Emission Zones and Congestion Charges that I don't know anyone who drives an old car in London. If you decide to pick up a...

I have had problems on 2 engines with piston pins seizing in alloy pistons after a couple of thousand miles. That causes the piston to cock over and clatter against the bore. Pull #3 and check the piston pin. I also have a noisy cam gear on 1 engine, even though it's new. It has 7thou backlash, the ...

Ford put a built-in governor in all their sidevalve engines in the design of the inlet & exhaust. If you have a stock engine it will run out of breath before it can hurt itself, unless you let it get out of control down a hill, as has already been said.

Had the triple bypass, had the fast irregular heartbeat after...it does settle down and go away. My doc said, get yourself a glass of wine and sit under a shady tree and reelaaaax. BTW that was 25yrs ago and I'm still here. Still taking the glass of wine under a shady tree - purely a preventative me...

Generator!? I have a perfectly good Armstrong starter, don't need no lektricitie. Bearings are all within tolerance. The clatter is a very light noise, like rattling a stone in a tin-can. I can replicate it quite well by grasping the front pulley and waggling it, so I'm sure it's the gear. I don't t...

Once upon a time, every British breakdown lorry had a Harvey Frost crane on the back - HF did lifting gear. I bought this HF Ford Jack at Beaulieu (our answer to Hershey) in September 1994. Thereby hangs a tale:- I was just out of hospital after bypass surgery, forbidden to drive or lift anything, b...

I have had this annoying loud clatter on a light throttle - open or close the throttle and it shuts up. The large cam gear is a new aluminium item. Checking backlash, I can get a .007" feeler between the teeth. Is this my noise? Would a nylon gear quieten things down? Does anyone sell an oversize ge...

I had .0025 pistons in my 09 when purchased 40yrs ago. When I joined the 2 piece crank club, one got smashed but I still have the other 3. Only trouble is I am in the UK, so the postage cost may be excessive.

I had a problem with piston wrist pins binding when hot. Thought I had fixed it, but went out to fuel up and found it stiff to crank at the service station. Once I was home I waved the IR thermometer at it and found area around #4 cylinder was around 500F. There's also a magneto problem so it's goin...

When a newbie 40yrs ago I forced my roller brgs in and split the hubs, which I didn't notice until I tried to fit new hubcaps. You find split hubcaps at swap meets which I suspect have been forced onto split hubs. Some years ago I read the suggestion that you grind the outside of the race until is a...

17017 is the part # for Wrench (spark plug and cylinder head nut). My English book only shows B prefix for 4cyl, 40 prefix for V8 85 & 52 prefix for V8 60. I think lots of the tools were revised to 01A (not 81A) circa 1940 because I find lots of those. Anyway they're V8.

They come in different sizes, the bigger the jet, the more gas flow. If only one works for you, maybe the other three are too big. If you have access to an acetylene welding cylinder you can use that to test how much flow they need - you only need to crack the regulator open slightly.

I had vibration which turned out to be loose rivets holding the brake drum to its shaft. That led to the whole trans shifting about because the tail shaft is bolted to the drum. Sorry to say, it sounds like you need to get it out and on an engine stand. I would look at Mike Bender's YouTube videos t...

I asked a similar question about pacemakers (being fitted with one on 22nd) and got 2 useful links, one a FAQ from a manufacturer. You may be able to Google for a FAQ on your device. https://www.modeltfordclubofamerica.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3310&p=25451#p25451 Good luck with your recovery, ...

I'm pretty sure this has been discussed before. My cardiologist says I need a pacemaker. I've read warnings about the EMF from electric welders affecting pacemakers (do I have to sell my TIG?) but does a T magneto generate a strong enough field to affect one?

The resin process sucks it into all the pores of the metal by putting the item in a vacuum tank, and as my head is the 09 original I am unlikely to find a replacement, so I should do whatever I can to preserve it. I'll talk to the company and report back.

Has anyone tried resin impregnation? It's primarily used to fill porosity in castings, it won't fill cracks, but I believe it inhibits corrosion so could reduce chance of further deterioration. I'm thinking of it for my low head which has rust flakes floating around despite using inhibitor anti free...

Caught me! It's a while since I saw that shaft so I forgot it was the day previous. As for doing an article, that would have to wait for all the other stuff on the to-do list, and it certainly isn't going to happen soon with summer coming at us. Winter is for writing tasks.

Stan Howe has just rebuilt my 5 ball but it was a RHD unit, and I have a LHD car. Stan doesn't have a spare throttle lever, does anyone have one? I would swap my RHD version if that helps. Jem Bowkett, Spalding UK

Yes. South East England is a bit vague, cos there's probably one near his town. He needs to make contact with the Model T Ford Register of GB. Dave who runs the club Facebook page is South of London and very helpful. Neil Tuckett (Google Tuckett Brothers) would also help.

My car is#9267 and has a Beaudette ally body. Unfortunately whoever painted the body sanded down the wood so vigourously that I can't read the number, and I can't find a number under the doors or any where else.

Yes Dan, that is an authentic porcelain sign, they're about 6 x4. I've been offered a couple over the years at silly prices. About 30 yrs ago a friend found a fence made of 15, with various different slogans. Somewhere I have a photo from when he displayed them at a show. Pretty sure he still has them

The giveaway is the Model T so prominent. It would have been known simply as the Ford car back then, or 20hp Ford. But it is nicely done, somewhere I have a list of Ford dealers for 1911, see if the name is authentic.

The Downton Abbey house is actually Highclere Castle, home to the 8th Earl of Carnarvon, surrounded by a 5000 acre estate. I used to live a few miles away and visited frequently before it became famous as Downton Abbey: now you can't get near the place for tourists. Lord Carnarvon financed the Tutan...